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Submission and Peer Review Policies

 

Understanding and adhering to the submission and peer review policies of the AAfPE Legal Educator Journal is crucial for all prospective authors. These policies address multiple submissions, prior publication, plagiarism, editor responsibilities, and the handling of articles from embargoed countries.

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AAfPE Submission Policies

 

1. Policy on Multiple Submissions and Prior Publication

  • Prior Publication: Authors must submit original work that has not been published elsewhere and is not under review for another refereed publication. Authors should disclose all prior publications and current submissions. If an article is based on previously presented or published work, it must be clearly referenced, and the new submission should significantly differ from the prior work.

  • Multiple Submissions: Concurrent submission of the same article to more than one publication is prohibited. Authors must inform the editors of any related submissions to other publications.

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2. Policy on Plagiarism

Plagiarism is defined as the use of another’s ideas, processes, results, or words without explicitly acknowledging the original author and source. Plagiarism in any form is unacceptable and considered a serious breach of professional conduct. Allegations of plagiarism will be investigated by an independent ad-hoc committee of experts who will make a recommendation to the responsible person.

 

3. Policy on Electronic Posting

Authors should be aware of the policy on electronic dissemination of their work:

  • Copyright Notice: All electronically posted versions of the work must include an appropriate copyright notice.

  • Electronic Reprints: Upon submission, authors must add a notice to any previously posted versions of the manuscript indicating that it has been submitted for publication. Once accepted, the final version should replace the preprint with a full citation and the accepted version including the DOI.

 

4. Research on Human and Animal Subjects

Authors must include a statement in the article that the research involving human or animal subjects was performed under the oversight of an institutional review board or equivalent body. For human subjects, authors must report that consent was obtained or explain why it was not.

 

5. Guidelines for Artificial Intelligence (AI)-Generated Text

The use of AI-generated content must be disclosed in the acknowledgments section, including the AI system used and the specific sections where AI-generated content appears. This includes text, figures, images, and code.

 

6. Recycling Text

Recycling of material, or “text recycling,” must adhere to all copyright policies. Authors should clearly indicate all recycled material and provide full references to the original publication. The new submission should clearly state how it differs from the previously published work.

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AAfPE Peer Review Policies

 

1. Responsibilities of the Editor

  • The Editor-in-Chief is accountable for the acceptance or rejection of articles, although this decision may be delegated to another editor.

  • The Editor-in-Chief should grant requests from authors to exclude specific individuals from the review process.

  • The review process must minimize bias and subject all articles of a given type to equivalent and unprejudiced reviews.

  • Decisions about acceptance should occur within a reasonable timeframe, and articles should be published in the order of acceptance when possible.

  • The Editor-in-Chief must provide authors with a written rationale for editorial decisions, especially for rejections.

  • Unpublished articles must be treated as confidential by all individuals involved in the editorial process.

  • Errors in articles must be corrected before publication or through published corrections afterward.

  • Articles submitted by editors must be handled by another editor to avoid conflicts of interest.

  • Editors must not engage in actions solely intended to increase citation metrics.

 

2. Conflict of Interest

Conflicts of interest must be avoided. This includes situations where personal, financial, or professional relationships could influence an individual’s decisions. Reviewers and editors with conflicts of interest must recuse themselves from the peer review process for the affected article.

 

3. Compliance With Sanction Laws

The AAfPE Legal Educator Journal complies with applicable sanction laws, which may prohibit transactions with certain countries, regions, entities, or individuals. Authors must ensure their submissions comply with these laws, especially regarding comprehensive sanctions and special designated nationals.

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By adhering to these submission and peer review policies, the AAfPE Legal Educator Journal ensures the integrity and quality of its publications, providing a credible platform for legal education research.

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